Chapter 15: Want To Go For A Run?

**Conroy**

I resisted the urge to cover my ears and block out his voice. Not this again.

"We came here to relax and watch the sunrise together to get our minds off things," he said. "And yet, you keep bringing her up. You've had your heart set against her for so long that you practically smell her perfume while you're taking a shit. Like I had, you have a right to be angry, but when your anger is tuned up to this extent it will only hurt you in the end. Maybe it's time for you to take a step back and take a look at things from a new perspective."

I shook my head. Unless I have a reason to, I don't think I'll be doing that," I told him.

Avery sighed. "Well, how about we start off on whether or not she was poisoned. You were there that day before you left to attend a meeting with the board of directors. Did you notice anything odd in the morning?"

"No, things were the same as usual. She planned to stay home that day and made a sweet treat out of potatoes."

The smile she gave me after telling me to taste it. I shook my head. Memories like those are useless.

"Hm, fine. But what if someone came to the apartment after you left? Then they poisoned Bianca for whatever reason and made her sign that divorce paper before she could be entirely taken over by the poison."

"That's such a far fetched theory." I chuckled. "Why would someone poison her then make her sign divorce papers? Are they that bored? Why didn't they just kill her instead?"

Avery shrugged. He placed both hands behind his head and stared at the passing clouds. "She's a Lycan, it wouldn't be easy to kill her. Also, maybe killing her wasn't their aim in the first place. The two of you breaking up and getting Bianca out of the picture might have been more beneficial than simply killing her and fleeing the scene with over a dozen lycans on their trail."

As much as I didn't want to discuss this, I wasn't that blind to not realize that Avery's reasoning was solid.

"Well, after I came back, I did notice she was acting weird," I admitted. "Her eyes weren't focused on anything in the room. She didn't move an inch. Sometimes I wondered if she was even breathing." I shook my head, revealing a nervous chuckle. "But that might be her going into shock after being exposed. It doesn't have to be anything complicated."

Yeah. There is no way that she was poisoned. Even the doctors said so. Besides, if she was telling the truth all this time, that would mean I've been directing my anger towards the wrong person all this time.

That couldn't be true. She *had* to be guilty. Because if not her, then *who*?

Who would want to harm him that badly? How would he ever be able to find out their identity?

No. It's Bianca. She is a liar and a murderer on top of that.

Whether or not I was willing to admit it, the truth is I needed someone to hate. She wouldn't have told me that Bianca was the perpetrator unless she was positive.

Bianca is guilty. There is nothing left to figure out.

_________

**Avery**

I took in Conroy's trembling hand as he tilted a bottle of water to his lips and shook my head. I might never be able to get through to him, and that's what worries me.

Releasing a sigh, I looked out to the ocean and changed the subject to something else. It didn't take long to get him yapping about one of his interests.

But that very evening I drove over to Bianca's house. Lucky for me, the gates were already open so I just drove right in.

After parking the car outside the front door, I ran up the stairs. I knocked on the door.

I was about to knock a third time when she at long last opened the door. She looked up in surprise. "Avery? Why didn't you call if you were going to come here?"

She wore a tan sweater dress that stopped mid-thigh. Her hair fell freely past her shoulders, framing her face.

My lips stretched into a smile. "That's because I wanted to talk to you in person, so I rushed over here as soon as I could without calling."

"What did you want to say to me?"

Bianca opened the door further, allowing me to see more of her foyer.

"Aren't you pent up? When last have you gone for a run?"

I watched as her eyes widened slightly, then narrowed. "Are you asking me to go for a run today? As in right now?"

Shrugging, I replied, "Or in half an hour. I'm not in a rush."

She lowered her gaze. "I'm not sure if I can run tonight."

"Even after what Conroy did?"

Her fingers flinched. Bianca sighed. "What? Was he boosting?"

"More like he wouldn't stop complaining about you." I measured my next words carefully so as to not sound insensitive. "After what went on with Riley, and then Conroy… I didn't know how you were managing it so calmly. But now I think I figured out that you’re not. You're simply going through the motions, dealing with conflicts as they come. But how are you dealing with the aftereffects? Are you sure you don't want to run? Feel the freedom of the wind through your fur? Exhaust your muscles?"

When Bianca glanced up, my heart dropped.

Her hazel eyes had a softer touch to them different from the looks she normally gave me. There was a touch of vulnerability in them that Bianca didn't try to hide. As for her expression, it almost looked as if she was… pouting?

I could hear my heart beating with my own ears. It tried to tell me something, but what?

Bianca sighed, breaking me out of my trance. "Where did you plan to have us run?"

I smiled. "Twenty miles away from the national park, closer to the silent river. I ran there often when I wanted time away from my pack as a teen."

"Having a pack to run with? That sounds amazing."

My smile faded. "Don't Lycans run together? Like in a community?"

She shook her head. "We prefer not to be surrounded by other Lycans unless there's a valid reason or it's direct relatives. The only times I ran with my folks was when I was a child. That was to make sure I had control over my transformation."

That's… crappy. I couldn't imagine that. Me and my family moved out of pack grounds when I graduated middle school but we never lost contact with them and went back almost every weekend. The other teen wolves and I would play around like crazy.

I was about to ask her again if she wanted to come, however, she beat me to it.

Bianca stepped outside and closed the front door. "I'm in. Your car or mine?"